Police lay charges as city looks to recover repair cost of 4 damaged overpasses

Saskatchewan law enforcement is responding to a sudden rise in semis flouting height restrictions as the City of Saskatoon looks to recoup repair costs.

The City of Saskatoon estimates it will cost at least $900,000 to repair four damaged overpasses and one bridge in the last three weeks, and there’s no telling if the city will be fully reimbursed for the damages.

“We’ve recognized this trend, and we’re all frustrated with the trend,” city solicitor Cindy Yelland said.

City council received an update after oversized loads damaged four different overpasses in the city, and a fire inside the University Bridge, where repairs are estimated at $870,000.

That estimate doesn’t even include strikes at the CPKC rail bridge near Attridge Drive and the McKercher Drive overpass at College Drive since those both happened on Sunday after the report was prepared.

The city learned the same driver struck both overpasses within minutes of each other on Sunday.

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“Repairs will be required, and we’re doing further assessments to determine the extent of the repairs that will be needed,” Terry Schmidt, the general manager of construction and transportation, said to council on Wednesday.

Saskatoon police announced a slew of charges on Thursday, saying they would share their investigation file with the city solicitor to consider next steps.

The sudden barrage of collisions began on March 5 when a semi heading north along Highway 11 entered the city with an oversized load when it hit the overpass at the Highway 16 intersection, effectively destroying the excavator it was hauling.

Repairs will cost roughly $400,000 and take roughly two more weeks to complete. Lane closures in the area will remain in place until the work is done.

Police say the driver faces charges including damage to public improvement, driving without due care and attention, operating with a major defect, having brakes out of adjustment, exceeding height restrictions and failure to comply with the conditions of a permit.

On March 8, a small fire inside the top of the arch of the University Bridge just west of Spadina Crescent. A sanitary sewer line was damaged, and the estimated repair cost is $120,000, which is being funded from existing budgets in operating for maintenance activities.

On March 11, a semi moving northbound on Circle Drive was hauling equipment that was too large to go under the overpass at 108th Street, struck it and caused significant damage to multiple girders.

In this case, police say the driver faces charges including failing to complete a daily inspection, exceeding height restrictions, exceeding the dimension limits of a permit and driving without due care and attention.

The driver who hit two overpasses on Sunday left the scene after the crashes, but was later tracked down in Martensville by RCMP, police said.

They face charges for exceeding weight restrictions, failing to complete a daily inspection, and failing to comply with the conditions of a permit.

City councillors expressed concern about the optics of the situation on Wednesday.

“This keeps happening, so (residents) just assume we’re doing something wrong — even though people are hitting a brick wall that’s literally been in the same spot for 50 years,” Ward 5 Coun. Randy Donauer said.

Administration reassured councillors the city is doing everything in its power to prevent these incidents and recoup its costs.

Schmidt said the city remeasures the clearance distance from the ground to the overpass anytime there is construction on or underneath an overpass. He told council signs showing the height of each struck overpass are accurate.

Fines for damaging public infrastructure are a maximum of $200 for a first offence and a maximum of $500 for subsequent offences under provincial law.

Amendments to the city’s Traffic Bylaw last year allow the option to impose a fine of $10,000 for an individual and $20,000 for a corporation.

Yelland said in one of the recent collisions, the city is working with the province to replace a $200 fine in favour of the city’s bylaw option since a driver can only be penalized once for an offence.

“There’s always cost to civic staff, our engineers having to attend this event, the cost to taxpayers of the traffic disruptions it causes, those are all not recoverable costs,” Yelland said.

The city could look to recover costs via restitution through the Provincial Court or filing a statement of claim with the Court of King’s Bench, she says.

Otherwise, insurance is the final remaining option, something the city had to do when the 108th Street and Circle Drive overpass was struck in 2022, but the city wasn’t able to prove who the driver was because it was a hit and run.

Taxpayers ultimately had to cover what insurance wouldn’t pay for.

“We are dealing with insurance companies on a lot of these claims, and I don’t know if anybody’s experience of dealing with insurance companies goes as well as ours, but sometimes they are not amenable to paying the full cost of the claim,” Yelland said.

The report from administration also says the drivers and company involved in the March 5 and March 11 incidents did not have a daily or annual Saskatoon truck permit.

The city is looking to partner with the province and the Saskatchewan Trucking Association to initiate an education and awareness campaign regarding height hauling.